Games
by Vivien Lestrange
Summary: When Druella gets a visit from an old friend, Bellatrix is happy to have someone more interesting to play with than her doll-loving sisters. Recent political developments however threaten the witches' friendship. Written for the fourth fic exchange at the Bellatrix Lestrange Forum.


**Story written for:** Lady Eleanor Boleyn

**Story guidelines as follows: **

Prompts  
1. AU friendship between two characters who were never friends in the books  
2."If we don't believe it of ourselves, then no one else will ever believe it of us either."  
3. The Lady's not for turning." - Margaret Thatcher

Characters - Like Azzie, surprise me.  
Likes - I'm pretty easy, but I always adore fluffy sisterly fics, hint hint...  
Dislikes - Anything that's M-rated, especially when it seems to come out of nowhere

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Harry Potter or anything related. No money is being made with this story.

* * *

**Games**

Bellatrix Black was bored.

She sat in an armchair in her bedroom and read a book called "Famous Wizarding Duells in War and Peace." The book described many historical duels in great detail. Bellatrix liked the book but she thought that duelling couldn't be learned from reading about it. She wanted to try it out for herself!

Too bad she didn't have a wand yet and wasn't allowed to do magic at home. Stupid laws about underage sorcery. The Ministry put a trace on every child so that they knew if someone under seventeen used magic. If they caught someone, the family was in trouble. They said it was for safety reason but Bellatrix and her family knew better. This rule only existed to protect the Mudbloods. Pure-bloods weren't supposed to have a head start at Hogwarts. They tried to drag the pure-bloods down to the Mudbloods' level so they could say it didn't make a difference.

Bellatrix grinned to herself. It did make a difference. Her parents had already told her everything important about magic and she could read as many books about it as she liked. The Mudbloods would learn how great the difference was when she came to Hogwarts next year.

She was looking forward to it but that didn't keep her from being bored right now. Her sisters' voices were audible from the playroom. Bellatrix decided to look what they were doing.

Andromeda and Narcissa were playing with the dolls. They did their hair and put them into pretty robes. It didn't look like something very likely to relieve her boredom. She was too old for this kind of thing anyway.

Both smiled as they saw her. "Hello Bella, come to play with us?" Narcissa asked.

"No, I've just come to watch," Bellatrix said sarcastically.

"Why? I want you to play with us," Narcissa said as sad look in her large blue eyes.

"Fine, I will," Bellatrix said before her youngest sister would start to cry. She did this rather quickly recently and it was annoying. Bellatrix suspected she had found out how easy it was to get other people to do what she wanted this way. Especially her father.

She sat down with the others and began to pull her doll's hair into a bun listlessly. Bellatrix found this even more boring than the book she almost knew by heart. If it had been only her and Andromeda, they would have re-enacted one of the Grindelwald battles with the dolls.

"You're not doing this right," she told her older sisters. "You're pulling Lyra's hair, Andra. It's hurting her."

"A doll can't feel anything, stupid," Bellatrix said, giving her doll's hair a particularly violent pull. Her patience was waning.

"Ouch," Narcissa said as if Bellatrix had pulled her own hair. Bellatrix and Andromeda both rolled their eyes.

The bell on the gate outside rang. Andromeda quickly got to her feet so she could see who was coming; Bellatrix followed her to the window.

"It's Madam Longbottom," Andromeda pointed out."And Frank's with her."

Bellatrix grinned broadly. This meant the time of boring games was over. Augusta Longbottom was friends with their mother and the two grown witches always wanted to spend time on their own. This meant that Frank was allowed to play with the girls and he just like Bellatrix preferred fighting over doing dolls' hair.

"Let's go downstairs," she suggested. Andromeda followed eagerly while Narcissa trailed behind them.

Bellatrix felt like running downstairs but she knew it was inappropriate and didn't want to be told off by both her mother and Madam Longbottom. She didn't want to embarrass herself in front of them either.

Mrs Longbottom was a stately-looking witch and she was half a head taller than petite, blond Druella Black. Bellatrix hoped that she would take after her father and be taller as well when she was older. It was easier to be taken seriously this way. Mrs Longbottom always commanded the respect of everyone around her.

The three girls greeted her politely and she responded before turning to Druella Black. "I'm sorry for having to bring the boy but my husband's not home and I really don't want to leave him in the house alone. Last time I did that, he set it on fire with accidental magic."

Bellatrix giggled and Frank grinned. "I put the fire out myself," he said proudly.

"You're welcome," Druella said. "My Bella is the same. Powerfully magical, I'm sure they'll be top of their year at Hogwarts. As children of their birth should be."

Mrs Longbottom gave her son a dubious look. "I hope so." She was really hard to please.

"You're going to Hogwarts as well next year?" Bellatrix asked. "Which house do you think you'll be in?"

"Gryffindor," the boy said without hesitation.

"Gryffindor?" Bellatrix wrinkled her nose. "You do know that there are Mudbloods in Gryffindors, don't you?"

Mrs Longbottom cleared her throat. "Language young Lady," she said.

Turning to Druella she added. "Your daughter needs to mind her manners. If she were mine, I'd wash her mouth out with the Scouring charm if she used such vulgar terms."

"Well, some things are so vile that there's no point in sugarcoating them," Druella responded dryly. Bellatrix was glad that her mother was on her side. Having your mouth washed out with the Scouring charm sounded rather unpleasant.

"Frank, you can play with the girls but behave yourself," Mrs Longbottom told her son.

"Yes, mother."

The two witches walked into the sitting-room.

Bellatrix looked at Frank. "Does your mother really wash your mouth out with the Scouring charm?"

"Yes, well, sometimes." He shrugged. "I really want to go to Gryffindor though. No matter who else is there. I think there's nothing more important than courage."

"But imagine, there's a Mudblood in the bed next to yours. He might touch your things and everything." Bellatrix shuddered. The idea of being forced to sleep in a room with lots of other girls didn't please Bellatrix at all, imagining Mudbloods among them was even worse.

"I'll make sure that they're all on the other side of the dormitory," Frank said. "Let's go outside for playing, shall we? The weather's really nice."

"I don't want to go outside," Narcissa piped up. "I'll get dirty and mother doesn't like that."

"No one makes you come," Andromeda said. Bellatrix could only agree.

Narcissa decided to come along after all.

Out in the garden Frank suggested: "We could play Auror and Dark Wizard."

This sounded exactly like the kind of thing Bellatrix felt like playing. "Fine, I'll be the dark wizard, well witch."

"What are the rules?" Andromeda asked.

"Well, the dark wizard is hiding because he's committed a crime and tries to get away while the Aurors try to catch him," Frank explained.

"I'll play an Auror," Andromeda said right away.

"Me too," Bellatrix said. These rules had made her change her mind.

"You said you're playing the dark witch so you have to do it," Frank said. "We can change positions later."

"I don't like this game," Narcissa complained. "Can't we play something else? Wedding day? It's more fun with a real boy."

Bellatrix and Andromeda broke into giggles while Frank blushed slightly. "Maybe later," he said.

"Promised?" Narcissa asked and stretched out her hand.

Frank hesitated. He obviously didn't feel like playing Narcissa's husband but the pleading look in her big eyes made him give in after all.

"Alright, promised," he said and they shook hands.

Bellatrix wondered if there was any boy who would be able to resist her sister.

Frank turned back to the older girls. "Do you have brooms here? We could make an air chase."

"Yes, of course," Bellatrix said with an excited glint in her eyes. Air chase sounded like fun. They went to the store room and got their three brooms. Andromeda agreed to take Narcissa's child broom and give Frank her own.

"We could take some of those ropes as well," Frank suggested. "So we can tie up our prisoners."

The girls agreed eagerly and they left the room with ropes and brooms. Frank and Andromeda gave Bellatrix some head start to find a hiding place and the game began. Andromeda found her quickly; she knew the garden even better than her sister because she liked to spend time outside on her own.

Bellatrix jumped onto her broom before they could grab her and manoeuvred through the bushes and into the air. Andromeda had fallen behind but Frank was on her track. Bellatrix tried some loopings and quick turns to shake him off but it was useless. He was a very talented flyer. She would really prefer to have him on the same team later, Bellatrix thought while trying to fly as quickly as she could.

With one quick movement, he was behind her and held onto the tail of her broom. Bellatrix tried to get free but it was in vain. Andromeda soon followed and together, they dragged her down to the ground.

"Let's tie her to the tree," Frank suggested.

They did so but the ropes were bound very loosely. Bellatrix knew that she could get off if she wanted to but she didn't want to be a spoil sport.

"Four witnesses have seen you leave the house after his death," Frank said. "We know that you have killed him. Admit it."

"I won't admit anything," Bellatrix said with a grin.

"The case is clear anyway," Frank said.

"You're lying. You wouldn't need my confession then," Bellatrix responded. "I'm not going to tell you anything."

"I think we should torture her a little," Andromeda suggested with a rather evil smile. "Maybe she talks then."

I'd love to see you try, Bellatrix thought.

Frank looked honestly shocked. "Aurors do not torture people, Andra. That's against the rules."

"We could also abduct and threaten her little sister," Andromeda suggested next.

Frank sighed in exasperation. "You don't really know what being an Auror means, do you?"

Bellatrix laughed. "Maybe we should change the rules a bit for the next round. The dark witch chases the Aurors as well and we see who gets caught first. Then you can follow your rules but I can do what I want because I'm a dark witch."

She definitely liked this idea.

"No, that's not right," Frank said. "Aurors capture dark wizards and not the other way round."

"Well, it could be," Andromeda said. "And it's more exciting if we can get caught too."

"Alright, one round, let's see how it goes," Frank said obviously accepting that he was overruled.

"Excellent," Bellatrix said slipping out of the ropes binding her. "I'll need some ropes now."

She went to fetch them and afterwards the game continued. It was much more interesting this way at least for Bellatrix who wasn't limited to running away anymore. She and Frank tried to get each other off their broomsticks and onto the other one's until they both fell down into the bushes. Bellatrix felt a few scratches but those didn't matter. Frank tried to hold onto her but she bit into his hand and he had to let go. Only for a moment though. He grabbed her again and they struggled until one of them would be forced to admit defeat. Frank received a black eye which gave Bellatrix an advantage. She managed to sit down on him and pin him to the ground.

"Got you," she said breathlessly.

"I held back," Frank claimed. "I'm not supposed to hit a girl."

Bellatrix laughed. She didn't believe a word of this.

Their respective mothers probably wouldn't be too glad if they saw how their playing went but they weren't there.

She took her ropes and bound his hands together. Her bonds were much tighter than the ones he and Andromeda had used before.

When she was sure he wouldn't get far, Bellatrix got up. She was really looking forward to the time when she could do this kind of thing by magic. Much less messy and exhausting. She looked on him with a grin and bound him even more tightly.

Evan was outright scared when she did this kind of thing to him but Frank was still giving her a challenging smile. Maybe because he didn't know her as well as her cousin did. Bellatrix wondered if she could make him scream for real. She imagined him looking up at her with pain in his eyes.

When her hand touched the bare skin on his arm, he flinched and cried out in pain. Bellatrix felt a rush of excitement which was soon replaced by shock. His face still looked contorted with pain and she quickly withdrew her hand. This kind of thing wasn't supposed to happen, father had told her so in no uncertain terms.

Slender hands were closing around her neck and she felt pressure on her windpipe. "Got you, Bella," Andromeda said as Bellatrix gasped for air. Only when she had serious trouble breathing, Andromeda let go of her. Bellatrix let herself sink to the ground shaking slightly from her sister's sudden intrusion.

"What's wrong with you two?" Frank asked as he scrambled to his feet. He had somehow managed to get the ropes off. Either Bellatrix hadn't bound him as tightly as she thought she had or he had used some magic of his own.

"Who said women are the gentle sex?"

"Must have been a Muggle," both Black sisters responded in unison.

"I think you two should go to the bathroom and clean yourselves up," Andromeda said. "Mother won't be pleased if she sees you like that."

Bellatrix looked at Frank who had a black eye, various bleeding scratches as well as twigs and leaves in his hair. Bellatrix touched her own hair and realised that it wasn't much different. She sighed. Her sister was probably right.

"I'll stay with Cissy," Andromeda said.

Bellatrix and Frank made their way back into the house. She didn't like apologies at all and her parents had told her to be very careful with apologies. Still, Bellatrix thought that one might be in order now.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to attack you with magic," she said.

"No problem," Frank said. "We're witch and wizard, it's only natural. At least you didn't set me on fire." He laughed.

"That's your speciality," Bellatrix told him. She liked his attitude. Frank surely didn't approve of the "Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery" either.

On their way to the bathroom, they passed the sitting-room where their mothers were talking to each other.

"The Knights of Walpurgis are making a grave mistake," Bellatrix heard Mrs Longbottom say. "This man cannot claim the position of Dark Lord. He's a half-blood for Morgana's sake and doesn't even acknowledge his birth family. Why pray tell me would he fight for the pure-bloods? He's using the Knights for his own gain, believe me."

Bellatrix stopped in her track. She was extremely interested in everything about the Knights of Walpurgis. This organisation had been founded during the age of the witch hunts. The members had both saved witches and wizards from Muggle persecution and punished the traitors who had endangered their fellows through their Muggle-loving ways. She wanted to join them as well when she was of age but it had never occurred to her there might be a new Dark Lord in her life time. Mrs Longbottom couldn't be right though, could she? They would never accept a half-blood in this position.

"Come on," Frank whispered. "Listening on doors is rude."

"But this is important," Bellatrix responded.

"Alright." Frank seemed to be curious as well.

"He's our only chance to win this fight," Druella responded. "Laws that ban our children from doing magic, all the powerful spells outlawed, the old celebrations forgotten, it never ends. This Ministry wants to disarm us first, rob us of our identity later and sell us over to the Muggles next."

"If that is so, it is the duty of each and every one of us to resist," Mrs Longbottom said.

Bellatrix couldn't agree more.

"We don't need an illegitimate Dark Lord for that."

"You're wrong here, Gusta. We can't do this on our own. We need a leader. Alone, we're powerless."

Frank sniggered at the name "Gusta."

"You're the one who is mistaken, Ella and I'm surprised to hear you speak like that. If we don't believe it of ourselves, then no one else will ever believe it of us either. Half-blooded Dark Lord or not"

"You didn't care about his blood status when you learned the Dark Arts from him with us at Hogwarts," Druella said.

Bellatrix grinned as she saw Frank's mouth open in astonishment. He had surely never associated his prim mother with the Dark Arts.

"That's right but the situation was completely different. He did not claim a position that ensured him unquestioning loyalty from the Knights of Walpurgis back then and he has no right to do so. He knows this I'm sure. This man will cause great suffering to our world and he does not care about our culture. He didn't care about our ways at Hogwarts," Mrs Longbottom said. "My brother-in-law Harfang has already made his position unmistakably clear. No Longbottom will ever bow to this or any half-blood or any pure-blood by the way."

"I know what Harfang says. That's why I'm talking to you. He's the one who's making a mistake. Lord Voldemort is the heir of Salazar Slytherin himself, the greatest wizard of our age. He's the only one who can bring true change. If you decide to oppose him, you will ally with our enemies. Be reasonable Gusta and do what is best for your family and for the wizarding world."

Bellatrix felt a rush of excitement at these words. Did her mother really know a wizard who was that powerful? Could he really be a half-blood? It sounded impossible. Maybe no one knew the entire truth about his parentage.

"That's exactly what I'm going to do," Mrs Longbottom said. "The House of Longbottom will not give allegiance to the usurper and the same goes for the House of Bones."

"Is there nothing I can do to make you turn back from this path?" Druella asked. "Nothing?"

"You turn if you want to," Mrs Longbottom responded. "The Lady's not for turning."

"You really shouldn't mess with my mother if she starts talking like this," Frank whispered. "Come on. We really don't want to get caught now."

Bellatrix followed him. She didn't know what she was supposed to make of this at all. There was too much she didn't understand. She only hoped the two wouldn't break up their friendship over this because she wanted Frank to continue visiting. He was more fun to play with than anyone else she knew.


End file.
